Flowers
by Silenced by Chronos
Summary: Lydia Carlton has been receiving flowers from someone. And each flower means something, like "faith," "happiness," or maybe even "love." Are they possibly from a secret admirer? Read to find out. Might be OOC Out of Character .
1. Variegated Tulips

**Disclaimer:**** I do not, by any means, own Hakushaku to Yousei (Earl and Fairy).**

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**Chapter 1: Variegated Tulips**

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Lydia Carlton rushed to the door to see who had rung the door bell. She could think of only two people who rang the door bell. It was either 1) the delivery person for flowers, or 2) none other than Edgar Ashenbert, the Blue Knight Earl. She opened the door: it was one of the flower delivery people.

"Thank you," Lydia said with a smile and signed the delivery boy's paper, proving that she received the flowers. She closed the door behind her softly and stared at the bouquet of flowers in her hands.

"Tulips this time, huh," she said to herself as she threw out the week-old flowers in a vase and refilled it with new water. This has been going on for almost two months now. She's been receiving flowers from some anonymous person every week. Sometimes the flowers were the same kind as the before, but other times she received a different type of flower. But she didn't mind receiving flowers from an anonymous person; she thought it was sweet. It was better than Edgar and his flirtatiousness.

The first thing that she received was a book about flowers, which she found peculiar. She thought, what was she supposed to do with it and why would someone send her a book about flowers? She found out the following week, when she received a bunch of dandelions, which was rather... Odd, since she thought that dandelions were just weeds. She remembered the book about flowers that she received last week and thought, _Perfect. _She looked at the table of contents and went to the page about dandelions and let out an "Aaaw," after reading the page. It turns out that dandelions meant "Faithfulness" or "Happiness."

Some other flowers that she received were white heathers which meant "Protection" or "Wishes Will Come True," irises which meant a couple of things but she decided that it meant "Your Friendship Means So Much To Me" and "Faith," and some others.

She placed the purple tulips which had white spots carefully in the vase and opened the book about flowers, looking up tulips. She guessed that the tulips were meant to be variegated tulips because of the spots. It meant "Beautiful Eyes," which had Lydia taken aback. She smiled, thinking that these flowers had been the best so far, since people always thought of her as a freak because of her green eyes. _Only Raven thinks that my eyes don't make me a freak at all, _she thought.

Then a thought came across her mind. Was it Raven who had been sending her these flowers? She shook her head, her russet hair following in the same motion. _It can't be, _she thought. She forced herself to believe that he probably only said that because he had green eyes as well--even if they were a different shade from hers and because he wasn't supposed to say anything bad to her because his "master" fancied her.

She sighed heavily. _If only it really was Raven..._

--

Lydia jumped out of the carriage upon arriving at the Ashenbert estate. She tucked loose strands of hair behind her ear and went inside.

"Ah, Lydia!" Edgar exclaimed and immediately approached her. He took her hand and kissed it. "How are you today, my caramel-haired maiden?"

"Edgar," Lydia said, slightly blushing and pulling her hand away. "Please refrain from doing such things." From the corner of her eye, she saw a figure standing not so far away and turned her head to see who it was. "Raven," she breathed out. "Good morning," she said in an utmost cheerful way and smiled sweetly.

"Good morning, Miss Lydia."

She rushed to his side and looked up at him, marveling at how much he's grown in just one year. He was nineteen now, and she was eighteen. "Raven! How many times do I have to tell you to call me by my name? It's Ly-di-a," she said with emphasis and shook her head. "If it's not Miss Carlton it's Miss Lydia."

"But I have to show you some respect. Master Edgar does after all-" He stopped what he was seeing mid-sentence, seeing that Lydia formed a sad expression on her face. _Don't put on that face, _he thought. _You know that I can't resist it... _"Lydia it is then," he murmured quietly.

She smiled widely. "Thanks Raven," she said happily. She felt someone place a hand on her shoulder and looked behind her to see who it was.

"It seems that you too have forgotten my presence," Edgar said, obviously feigning sadness. He snaked his arm around Lydia's waist and pulled her closer to him, causing Lydia to blush once again. "Edgar!" She yelled out again, but he ignored her. He looked at Raven intensely with his mauve eyes. Raven saw the look on his master's face and knew that he wasn't the least bit happy. It seems that he was jealous of Raven.

"It seems that I have some work to do... In the garden," Raven lied, knowing that his master just wanted him away for the moment. "I'll see you later, Lydia," he whispered and disappeared in a flash.

Once Lydia was done with her work for Edgar, she immediately left the room of a vast amount of books. She rushed to the garden, near the the huge fountain. "Raven!" She called out, and he instantly appeared. "Yes, Lydia?" His masculine voice came. They've been meeting each other in the garden almost everyday that she was there. She's been talking to Raven about a lot of things, including the flowers that she's been receiving. The fact that they've been meeting each other wasn't a secret or anything, but they didn't think that Edgar knew. Not that it mattered, since they really weren't doing anything to offend the Blue Knight Earl.

She smiled at the sight of him. "Guess what kind of flowers I got today." She ran to a nearby bench and sat down, her long, russet hair following her.

Raven shrugged, "I don't know. What was it?"

"Tulips. Purple with white spots. So I'm guessing it was supposed to be variegated tulips. Guess what variegated tulips stand for," she said, trying to keep her excitement in.

Raven shrugged again.

"It means 'Beautiful Eyes.' So far, that bunch of flowers have made me the happiest so far," she commented. Raven remained quiet and just listened to her. He never said much, but he always gave her advice on petty things like eating habits, or more important things like friends, family. ...And Edgar. "Can you believe it, Raven?" She really looked happy, and he smiled unconsciously. She continued, "Someone who doesn't think of me as a freak because of my green eyes, but thinks they're beautiful instead."

She turned to Raven. "Yes, they're beautiful indeed." He agreed, the smile still on his face.

Lydia averted her gaze, feeling her cheeks become hot. She wondered when Raven had become so good-looking and how much better he looks when he smiles. _Come to think of it, _she thought. _Raven has just been listening to me, and hasn't told me much about himself much... _Her jade green eyes lingered on his figure. _He's still a mystery to me... _

"Hey Raven," she started. "Tell me about yourself. I'm always going on and on here about myself, so it's your turn."

"I don't know," he simply said.

"Hm, what is your favorite color?"

"Green, I guess..."

"Do you like... Caramel?" She looked at the clouds, as if thinking of something else.

_Caramel? As in the sweet caramel? Or... _He stole a glance at Lydia. _Or does she mean... Herself as caramel? _"I don't know."

"Oh..." She seemed rather disappointed. "Then... What do you think of Edgar?"

"He's my master."

"That's a pretty vague answer. Have you ever... Liked or loved someone? That is, that isn't related to you..."

His snapped his head up immediately when he heard the question and looked at Lydia. His eyes widened for a while, but he regained his calm and collected self. It seemed as though he was hiding something. He looked at her with such an expression in his eyes and said, "I..."

_

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_**Author's Note:**** Cliff hanger! Hehe, Sorry. First fan fiction of Earl and Fairy! Hope you guys enjoyed this short chapter. :)**

**-Aimee  
**


	2. Red Carnations

**Disclaimer:**** I do not, by any means, own Hakushaku to Yousei (Earl and Fairy).**

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**Chapter 2: Red Carnations  
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Raven hesitated and looked away. Finally he said, "I don't know." He heaved a light sigh. "I don't think I even know what loving or even merely liking a person is or how it feels." His emerald eyes looked at Lydia with an expression that she wasn't able to comprehend. It looked somewhat like a mix of confusion and annoyance.

Lydia chuckled. She found it funny how Raven was already nineteen years old, the age when one's love interest is supposed to be most curious and at peak, yet he was still very inexperienced with it. More than inexperienced, it was more like he had no clue about love at all. "Well, haven't you ever felt an attraction to anyone of the opposite sex? So much that you feel like you want to be with her all the time and her smile alone makes you happy. Or..." she trailed off and paled at her own thought. "It could be an attraction to the same sex too..." she whispered.

Raven looked at her with an even weirder expression. "Lydia, did you just call me gay?" He raised an eyebrow at her.

Her face turned a bit red out of embarrassment. "Ah, forget it, forget it. It was a dumb idea. Sorry," she said, flustered.

Raven shook his head and laughed briefly. _"Really now, I wonder what goes on in her head," _he thought. "I most certainly have a strong attraction to Master Edgar," he said and stole a quick glance at Lydia. She had that half-shocked and half-nervous look on her face: shocked because she actually heard Raven laugh and nervous because the thought of Raven being gay returned to her head. He let out a chuckle, thinking that Lydia's expression was priceless. "Of course, there's also you," he turned to face the russet-haired maiden.

A blush crept onto her fair cheeks. "Why do you say that?"

He shrugged. "I'm happy when you're happy and am happy to have pleased you, as I'm sure Master Edgar would have wished."

She let out a disappointed "Oh."

"How else can I know if I love someone?"

"Well, there are times when you put that person before you and are willing to make sacrifices for her," Lydia answered.

"Someone who isn't part of my family, right?" Raven stared out in space, trying to think deeply about who he would make sacrifices for and wasn't related to him. Unfortunately for him, only his master and Lydia came to mind. Again. "Just you and Master Edgar," he told her frankly. "But then I guess you could leave out Master Edgar since I consider him as family in a way. That leaves just you." He blinked. "Does that mean that I like or possible love you?" he asked bluntly and with such innocence.

Lydia sweat dropped. "Not necessarily." She was amazed at how innocent Raven's mind was and wondered how he managed to give her advice on light love matters at times. _"Maybe," _she thought, _"Maybe he can easily notice if other people are in love but is completely dense when it's about himself..." _

Raven frowned."Are there any other ways?"

The fairy doctor placed her index finger on her chin, thinking about any other ways. "Jealousy," she stated plainly. "When you see the person that you love with someone else who can possibly snatch her away, you get jealous and think 'I want her all to myself.' Then you feel kind of annoyed and feel a painful pang here," she pointed to the spot on her chest where her heart was supposed to be. "It feels like your heart is being kicked aside."

"Ah, is that so," he said monotonously. "I never felt like that," he lied. But inside he could feel his heart being squeezed and felt like the way that Lydia had just described. The image of Edgar being so close and intimate with her made his blood boil. Was he jealous? He wasn't sure. He looked at Lydia. _"Does that mean that there's a possibility of me being in love with you?" _he thought, surprised at his own _possible _feelings.

He then thought of Edgar and how he wanted Lydia as well. Even if he found out some day that he did indeed, love Lydia, he wouldn't have it in himself to tell her how he feels. Because he could never betray his master. His master who has helped him greatly and treated him as his own family. His master who controls the sprite within himself that could easily take over him and wreck havoc.

Images of his master and Lydia kept popping up in his head. He looked at Lydia and couldn't help but feel annoyed at both her and Edgar, the images of the two of them together still etched in his mind. He got up from the bench that he was sitting on. "Later," he said and disappeared.

--

Lydia entered a room filled with books and a few furniture here and there which she and Edgar like to call their "workplace." She closed the door softly.

"Ah, Lydia," Edgar said in his overjoyed voice and ran to her. "Eat with me, won't you?" The blonde earl ushered her to the balcony, not really giving her a chance to decline his offer. He pulled out a chair for her to sit on and pushed in back in for her once she was ready.

She muttered a soft "Thank you."

He sat down in the chair opposite from her. "Eat, my caramel-haired maiden," he ordered in such a smooth and suave voice that it didn't seem like he ordered at all. Of course, Lydia obeyed and popped a piece of cake into her mouth.

Edgar's mauve eyes lingered on her, dancing with such an expression that not many could understand.

_"I wish he would stop looking at me like that," _she thought.

He let out a chuckle.

"What?" Lydia asked and stopped eating. Her cheeks and a tint of red, embarrassed because Edgar was just watching her eat. For her, it felt just... awkward.

"You look simply adorable when you eat," the golden-haired earl said and chuckled again. He got up from his chair and walked to Lydia. "And," he said, surprising her by hugging her from behind. "You got some icing near your lips," he said and licked it off of her face, causing her to blush more. He took a few steps away from her and shook his head, his golden locks swaying with their loveliness.

He turned back around to face the girl. "Do you like the confectionery?"

She nodded and half-smiled at him, avoiding his gaze, not wanting their eyes to meet. The blush on her face grew more visible, the thought of Edgar's face being so close to hers and licking icing off of her face replaying in her mind.

He walked back to the table and took the flower from its small vase that was in the center of the table. He brought it to his face and let out a smile. "Red carnations. Do you know what they mean?" he asked, turning to the caramel-haired girl again.

Her head immediately snapped up upon hearing those words. _"Flowers: red carnations... Their meaning?" _She immediately faced Edgar with a soft expression. She shook her head, "No, I don't."

"A red carnation means 'my heart aches for you.' A very expressive thing for a flower to symbolize." He kissed the flower and tucked it behind Lydia's left ear. "The flower understands me, don't you think so, Lydia? It knows how I long for you."

She felt her cheeks become hotter and hotter with each passing second. "Edgar," she said hesitantly.

"Yes?"

"Why do you... Why do you know what those flowers symbolize?"

Edgar shrugged.

"By any chance... Are you the one who has been sending me all these flowers every week?"

He stood still, looking firmly at Lydia. "Flowers? What flowers?" This was somewhat of a shock. Someone has been sending _his _Lydia flowers without his knowledge? That wasn't exactly pleasing to know.

_"Ah, that's right, I haven't told him about the flowers yet..." _"For about two months now, I've been getting these flowers from someone every week. Before, that the person sent me a book about what flowers meant too... And I just thought that it might be you because you just told me what red carnations meant just now..."

"Hm, it seems that I have more competition," Edgar said bitterly. Of course he would be displeased. He was having a hard time enough trying to keep people like Kelpie away. How he wanted Lydia's heart to belong to him and him alone. Yet he didn't even have half of it and now he had more people to compete against? "But," said the earl in a calmer state now, "I _did _say that I would back down _only _if you chose another man."

"But since you haven't chosen anyone yet," he said in a voice that sounded so heavenly to Lydia's ears, "then I still have a chance," he whispered into her ear. She blushed, feeling his hot breath on her and feeling his lips brush lightly against her ear. He stood behind her chair and hugged her from behind again. "Isn't that right, Lydia?"

"Y-Yeah," she said unconsciously, just wanting to hear Edgar's voice.

"Then, will you be my date to Count Duval's masquerade ball tonight?"

She nodded her head slowly. "Mhmm," she murmured.

"That's great!" Edgar smiled widely and stood up straight. "You can pick your dress, shoes, and all those other things from your dressing room here. I've just gotten new stuff from France. Just ask for help from the maids if you need it. We're leaving at around seven thirty. See you then," he said already out of the room as he swiftly closed the door behind him.

The door opened again. Edgar poked his head in and said: "This time, don't let Raven or any _male_ see you in your undergarments." He narrowed his eyes at her and disappeared once again.

Lydia sighed. _"Really now, that Edgar."_

_--_

Edgar knocked onto the door of Lydia's personal dressing room. "Lydia, are you ready?"

"D-Don't come in!" she yelled.

"Alright, alright, I won't," he replied and backed away from the door.

The door opened slowly. "Don't laugh, okay?" she asked sheepishly once she poked her head out.

"I promise."

She breathed in deeply and opened the door widely and stepped out. What was revealed was the russet haired maiden in a strapless, intricately designed white dress that reached down to the floor and small white laced gloves. Her hair was tied up into a half-ponytail with the ends of her hair curled into ringlets. "Y-You promised not to laugh," she reminded him and looked away, embarrassed of how she looked.

"And why would I laugh?" he asked, wondering why in the world anyone would laugh at such a sight. "You looked beautiful," he said and smiled warmly. He kneeled down on one knee, slipped her glove off, and kissed her hand, causing her to blush once again.

"L-Let's go, shall we?" She pulled her hand away from Edgar and began to walk away.

Edgar opened the carriage door for her and helped her in, getting in after her.

"Raven isn't coming?" she asked and tilted her head to the side.

"No. He's a teenager. I figured that he needed some free time to... You know, be a teenager. I feel like I'm making him waste his youth on just dragging him along with me."

"Oh."

"Besides, I can't rely on his strength forever."

She smiled at him. "You're right." ...And he received a quick peck on his cheek. "You're absolutely right."

--

Lydia was awed by the vastness of Count Duval's mansion. She was separated from Edgar earlier because the guys and girls had to be separated so that they wouldn't know who was who. Lydia was given a white butterfly-shaped mask that covered the area around her eyes and the bridge of her nose.

At the moment, she was leaning against the wall, holding a wine glass in between her middle finger and her ring finger. _"Where is Edgar?" _she thought. She tried to find him earlier based what he was wearing, but too many people were wearing similar attire as him. A look of boredom and uneasiness was spread across her face.

"Excuse me," a masculine voice came. Before her stood a man of about five foot eleven inches tall, with a fair complexion, unusual silver hair, and sapphire blue eyes. He bowed down before her and held out his right hand as an invitation. "May I have this dance?" he asked in an utmost polite and gentle way, smiling handsomely at her.

"I'm sorry, but I'm a lousy dancer," she said, feeling bad for refusing his offer.

"Is that so?" He stood up straight and gently grabbed her hand, taking the wine glass from her with his other hand and giving it to one of the servants. "It's okay. I'll guide you." He brought Lydia to the dancing area with him without receiving any protests or fits from her.

He placed one hand on her waist and took her left hand in his, her right hand already placed on his shoulder. The orchestra began to play a new composition and the silver-haired man whose name she didn't even know began to move his feet, trying to guide her.

"I told you I'm a lousy dancer."

He chuckled. "And I told you I'll guide you. Follow my steps. One, two, three. One, two, three. One, two, three," he counted. Lydia danced slowly and steadily. She was amazed that she was actually beginning to get the hang of dancing the waltz. Well, for now, anyway.

They danced around. He twirled her and caught her by her waist. "So, how do you think you're doing so far?"

"I'm managing somehow," she grinned at him, looking at his blue eyes. She had an urge to pull off the mask that he was wearing to see what he really looked like. She wanted to see the face of the man with the great expressive sapphire eyes with his smooth, velvety voice.

"Are you from London?" he asked.

"Yes. And you are from...?" she asked, urging him to finish her sentence.

He grinned, showing his dimples. "Let's just say that I'm from a place that is somewhat far away but can be easily reached."

"Well, that's unfair," she huffed and accidentally stepped on his foot. He let out an "Ow!" and pretended that it hurt him badly, making Lydia feel a bit guilty. But they continued to dance anyway.

"Your name?" he asked again.

"Answer my question first."

He frowned. "My foot hurts," he lied, trying to make her feel guilty.

She grimaced. "Lydia Carlton. Yours?" She winced a little, feeling pain in her feet. She was dancing in high heels and mind you, she wasn't very used to dancing at all, so of course it hurt.

"Is something wrong?"

Before she could answer, she accidentally stepped on his foot yet again. This time, she tripped and fell on top of the man she was dancing with. She closed her eyes and feel her body fall on top of his, hearing a loud 'thud' because of their bodies colliding with the floor. Her landing didn't hurt at all because his body was unusually... soft.

"Are you okay?" she heard him ask. She opened her eyes and revealed her jade green ones. After realizing the position she was in, she felt blood rush to her cheeks and immediately got up.

"I'm sorry!" she apologized. She saw people around her staring at them and she felt her cheeks become hotter. She ran away from the dance floor out of embarrassment. _"Oh, God! I'm such an embarrassment!" _she thought. She stopped running once she realized that she had left her dancing partner on the floor. And she was the one who made him fall down in the first place. She turned around to return to him, but he was already approaching her.

"I'm sorry!" she blurted out and bowed.

"It's alright," he smiled at her again. "I told you that I would be your guide, but I guess I failed on that since we ended up on the floor."

She stood up and looked at him with a sincere, apologetic look. "I told you I was a lousy dancer," she murmured quietly.

"Lydia!" she heard someone yell. There was no mistaking it—that oh-so familiar voice belonged to none other than Edgar. He was frantically searching for her and recognized her when she fell down on the dance floor. He was nearby but didn't seem to find the fairy doctor yet.

"Hm, I guess I'll take my leave now." The sapphire-eyed person turned around to leave. "You look amazing tonight, Miss Lydia. And my name is Keith, by the way," he said and disappeared in the crowd of people with masks on their faces, laughing merrily and going on their own way.

"Lydia, are you alright?" Edgar asked. He had a worried expression on her face.

She nodded. "Yeah. It's not anything serious, Edgar," she reassured him. "I just tripped, that's all."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

He heaved a sigh of relief. "That good to know."

She stared at the crowd of people where her dance partner disappeared.

"Who was the person you were dancing with?" he asked, both curious and somewhat jealous.

"Ah, him. Someone very peculiar and interesting."

_

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_**Author's Note:**** I finally updated! Sorry if it took a while. Well, I hope you guys enjoyed this chappie. :) If you have any ideas, feel free to tell me. Possible pairings: LydiaxEdgar, LydiaxRaven, LydiaxKeith, _maybe _LydiaxKelpie. Other pairings may be added in the future.  
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**Review please! Flames are highly accepted.**

**Ja!  
**

**-Aimee  
**


	3. Daffodils

**Disclaimer:**** I do not, by any means, own Hakushaku to Yousei (Earl and Fairy).**

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**Chapter 3: Daffodils  
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Lydia flopped onto her bed, already in her night gown. She stared at the white ceiling of her apartment, trying to form objects from the designs on it. She found herself just staring at it blankly instead of looking for a star-shaped object or an animal of some sort. _"Keith." _The image of the man whom she had danced with appeared in her mind, his sapphire blue eyes mysterious and inviting.

She thought about his strange silver hair that had a luster and shine so similar to that of the night moon. She's never seen anyone with silver hair before except in...

She immediately sat up straight, a thought coming to mind. "Is he—" she said to herself but stopped and shook her head. She laid herself down on her bed again and turned to her side. "He can't be a fairy," she said to herself and laughed inwardly, feeling ridiculous for having thought that Keith was a fairy. _"If he was a fairy, I'm sure that I would have notice right away."_

"Keith. . . A strange fellow."

_"Maybe I'll meet him again someday," _she said and chuckled, then moving on to her next thought: Raven. She _was _disappointed that he didn't come. She was also surprised that he listened to Edgar and did not come since she thought that he would protect his master at all costs. But then again, she was proud of Edgar for making Raven stay. She giggled, feeling a bit silly for giggling alone in her room. _"Edgar treats Raven not as a servant but as his own brother."_

The image of Edgar in his glory wearing his black suit to the ball that night made her blush a bit. _"He looked very... handsome, as usual." _Her eyebrows furrowed, remembering how he dazzled a lot of other women at the ball as well. "Handsome, but still the same, lecherous, perverted, flirtatious person that he is."

She stopped ranting about the blue knight earl and froze, another thought coming to mind. "No way," she said in disbelief, beginning to panic frantically. Was she jealous? She wasn't jealous. ...Right? She was only pointing out how Edgar was and how he unjustly he treated women, like she usually did. ...Right? The way he complimented that one girl on how wonderful her dress looked and how he complimented another on how nice her hair was arranged meant that he was trying to make them fall into his little trap. She wasn't jealous that he complimented them or anything.

She bobbed her head up and down, trying to reassure herself. _"I'm not jealous. I'm not jealous. This is how I always act toward Edgar." _She froze again and grimaced. If she always acted or reacted like that because of Edgar, did that mean that she has _always _been jealous because of Edgar.

_"No! No, no, no." _She mentally slapped herself and forced herself to sleep to cease all the confusing thoughts from just flowing, one coming after another.

"No," she murmured, half-asleep. She soon dozed off, the word "no" still on her mind.

--

The following week, Lydia received an expected bouquet of flowers. She did her usual routine: place the fresh flowers carefully on a flat surface like the table or her bed, throw out the week-old flowers that she received the previous week, refill the vase with water, place the new flowers in the vase and sniff them briefly, and get the book about flowers to know what the flowers meant.

She opened the red hardcover book and flipped through the pages, which had the names of the flowers sorted alphabetically.

"What kind of flowers are these again?" she asked no one in particular and checked; the flowers always came with tags that said what kind of flowers she was sent. "Ah, daffodils."

She continued on the page containing information about the said flower. "Let's see..." She sat her self comfortably on an armchair, reading the information about daffodils carefully.

Her eyes widened a bit; and the book slipped from her hands, dropping onto the floor. She picked it up, her hands trembling a bit. She reread the meaning of daffodils. Again. And Again. And Again.

"Daffodils," she read out loud, "can mean any one or all of the following: uncertainty, chivalry, respect, or unrequited love."

She half-smiled, feeling flustered. She gently cupped her cheek with her free hand. "Someone possibly loves me?" She was shocked; the feeling of having butterflies in her stomach surprisingly pleasant. She never thought that someone would like her—let alone lover her. It made her happy since she was always thought of as a freak. _"I want to get to know this 'Flower person'..."_

She glanced at the clock. It was almost nine o'clock. "Holy cow!" She quickly put the book away and got ready for work. Still, she couldn't help but smile. _"I might be attractive or appealing to someone after all."_

--

"Raven! Good morning!" Lydia called out as she got out of the carriage. She waved her hand at him and smiled, approaching Raven, who was currently watering the plants for some reason. It was unlike him, but something must have happened for him to have taken a sudden interest in gardening.

"Mi- Lydia, good morning," he greeted, keeping himself focused on carefully watering of the plants. "You seem awfully enthusiastic today."

"Ah," she agreed and smiled wider but frowned once remembering that she was late. "Where is Edgar?" she asked rapidly.

"Oh, he's not here. He said that he had some urgent business to attend to and that he's sorry for leaving you alone. He didn't let me go with him again. I wonder why. He'll be back in about three days."

"Oh. Well, you won't believe what kind of flowers I've gotten this week." She grinned widely.

"What kind are they?"

"Daffodils. They were a mix of a bunch of colors. Ah, they looked wonderful, but what they meant was even more amazing!" Her face alone was brimming with excitement and joy. It wasn't that often that she showed her unlady-like side, so this was kind of a surprise for Raven. "Well, I don't want to bother you and interfere with your work, so I'll tell you more about it later. I'll be waiting in the garden!" She ran off before he even got to say anything else.

_"She's unusually happy. They're just flowers. Simple flowers..."_

_--_

Raven walked into the garden, heading to their usual meeting place. He spotted the russet-haired girl dancing around by herself and bending down, as if giving the flower in her hand to someone very small. And she most likely was doing that. She smiled and waved her hand, the flower floating on its own and going away.

"A fairy?" he asked, approaching her.

She nodded. "A brownie. He looked adorable."

"I saw it."

She stood up and walked to one of the nearby benches. "About the daffodils... Well, they have four possible meanings: uncertainty, chivalry, respect, and unrequited love." She sighed dreamily: something Raven had never seen her do.

"Is it really that shocking or important?" he asked bluntly, not having a single clue about how Lydia was feeling.

"Well, yeah."

"Is that so..." He looked away, as if something had caught his attention.

_"I guess that he's not really that interested in what I have to say," _she thought, disappointed.

Raven stood up immediately and got into a fighting stance. "Who's there?!" He stared intently at a nearby flower bush, ready to pounce if it was an enemy of some sort.

Out came a silver-haired man with blue eyes. "Calm down. I'm no enemy."

"Who are you?" Raven growled defensively.

"Keith? Is that you?" Lydia asked, surprised. She rushed to his side to get a better look at him. "It is you! What are you doing here?" she asked and smiled sweetly.

He kneeled down on one knee and kissed Lydia's hand, making her blush; she _did _blush often and turned red easily, but Raven did **not **like how he was acting toward her. He felt irritated toward the guy, who just barged in to his and Lydia's private moment. He had felt the way he did toward the guy right now; it was how he felt toward Edgar at times, but his annoyance toward this guy was much, much stronger for some reason.

Nope, he definitely didn't like this guy already and he didn't like how he was treating Lydia. He did not like him _at all._

_

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_**Author's Note:**** Can someone tell me whether Raven can see fairies or not? I know, I haven't updated in a while and this chapter is kind of short. I'm sorry! I promise that I'll make the next chapter longer. :) And I have valid reasons for not updating sooner, one being that my dearest grandmother had just passed away, (may she rest in peace). But I wanted to update this story two days ago on my birthday, but I'm kinda late so sorry again ___ Thank you for reading :D  
**

**Review please! Flames are highly accepted.**

**Ja!  
**

**-Aimee  
**


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